Friday, February 27, 2015

100% Whole Grain Pull-Apart Dinner Rolls

Those of you who have been around since I started this blog in 2008 are probably familiar with this recipe, considering that I have blogged about it nearly once a year, every year since then. But every time I share it, it's because I've made some change or another and I want to tell you all about it.

This time I've made the rolls fluffier, and I've also baked them in an eight by eight inch baking dish to get them all bunched up and pull-aparty. This variation has quite a bit of vital wheat gluten in it, three tablespoons, which gives these rolls a lovely springiness.

These are not delicate, melt-in-your-mouth rolls. These hearty rolls point and laugh at delicate melt-in-your-mouth rolls while they steal their lunch money.

They have no white flour, only whole grains and flax seeds. Ah yes, before I forget - very important detail: I make these with King Arthur whole wheat flour because it's super finely ground, and I think that that is one of the reasons why these are lighter than the whole grain rolls I've blogged before. King Arthur flour is a bit more expensive than other brands, but for this recipe I highly recommend it if you can find it in your area. If you don't live in the US or you can't find King Arthur in your area, any super fine whole wheat flour will do. Could one just make any whole wheat flour finer by pulverizing it in a food processor or high-speed blender, I wonder?

2. Add in the water and the oil and mix on low until all the liquid has been incorporated. Keep an eye on it and add more liquid if it doesn't look hydrated enough. It should be a very wet dough, because all those whole grains and the flaxmeal are going to be very thirsty. Check out the video below to see how your dough should look.

3. Knead at medium speed for five or six minutes. Your dough should really be rather wet. Not soupy, but super sticky. Too sticky to handle with your hands!

4. Let the dough rise, covered, for 90 minutes or until doubled in size. I let mine rise on the stove top, with the burners off but slightly warm. Not hot!

5. When the dough has doubled in size, you should see that it is now firm and ready to use. Divide the dough into 9 equally-sized balls, using a bit of flour to handle the dough if it's a little too sticky. Place the dough balls in a greased 8 by 8 inch metal baking pan.

6. Brush melted butter all over the tops and let the rolls rise for 45 minutes. I also let the rolls rise on the slightly warm stove top.

7. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200C) about 30 minutes into the second rise. Bake the rolls for 20 minutes, rotate the baking pan to make sure they bake evenly, and bake for ten more minutes or until the tops are golden brown. You can insert a skewer or a pointy knife in the center of the center roll to test for doneness. Even better- if you have a thermometer, bake until the rolls reach an internal temperature of about 190-200 degrees F. (85-95C). If your oven doesn't like to bake from the top, you can broil these at 400 for the last couple of minutes. Keep an eye on them!

8. Brush melted vegan butter all over the tops as soon as they come out of the oven. Let them sit in the baking pan for about five minutes before flipping them over on a cooling rack. Flip them back up!

NOTE: These are best enjoyed warm or toasted, when the crumb is at its fluffiest.

Let's see a few step-by-step shots of how things should look like, plus a quick video of the dough while it's being kneaded.

♫ I knead you now. More than words can say. I knead you now. ♫*

After kneading.

Doubled in size.

Ready for the second rise.

All poofed up and ready to bake!

Lovely golden rolls!

*(Video link to get that monster ballad stuck in your head for a couple of days. THE HAIR.)

Sorry I missed your comment yesterday, Susan! Clearly you should just come and get them from me then. The ones pictured here are from a couple of weeks ago, but I did make a fresh batch yesterday so... just sayin'.

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HELLO THERE!

Welcome to Wing It Vegan!I'm River and this old blog here is where I share my favorite recipes and photos of our fluffy backyard birds. I hope you haven't come here looking for seriousness and sophistication!MORE »